Kazakhs vote in parliamentary, local elections

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Voters in Kazakhstan cast their ballots on Sunday to elect lawmakers and local officials in early legislative and local elections, after a presidential election and constitutional referendum last year.

According to the country's Central Election Commission, the preliminary turnout in the elections as of 06:10 p.m. local time (1210GMT) is 53.11%.

A statement by the commission also said that nearly 6.3 million of over 12 million eligible voters cast their ballots thus far, with voting procedures set to end at 08:10 p.m. local time (1400GMT).

“(Kazakh) President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev cast his ballot in the 2023 election … at the polling station in the Al-Farabi Palace of Schoolchildren,” a statement by Tokayev’s press service Akorda said.

For Kazakh nationals living abroad, 77 ballot boxes have been set up in foreign representations across 62 countries.

“This is the most competitive legislative election in Kazakhstan’s modern history and it is a key step in building a Just and Fair Kazakhstan. It is a demonstration of how far our country has come on its journey towards greater participatory democracy. The mixed majority-proportional model has ensured that the entire spectrum of views and opinions of voters has been covered,” Kazakhstan’s Foreign Minister Mukhtar Tleuberdi said in a statement.

About 800 foreign observers are following the elections, including from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), Organization of Turkic States (OTS), Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic States (TURKPA), Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

On Jan. 19, Tokayev dissolved the lower house of parliament and called early elections for March 19.